How Erik Aanderaa is Sailing the North Atlantic and Arctic Ocean
Erik Aanderaa, well known through his popular YouTube channel, sails his Contessa 35 production yacht single-handed, which is well equipped and modified for Erik’s special type of sailing that took him as far as Greenland only recently. This also includes particularly strong sails for dependability in tough conditions and a very effective sail-plan with a versatile cutter rig configuration for easier sailing alone.
“Rolly Tasker Sails has a very strong background in making offshore cruising sails”, Erik said. “They perfectly understand the extreme type of sailing that I do and what special challenges in sail-making arise from that!”
Special Sail Set-Up
Erik: “I carry 5 sails on board. Mainsail, genoa, jib, gennaker and a storm sail. I mainly use my mainsail and genoa for general sailing, and reef these relative to the conditions. For longer reaching conditions I use my A5 gennaker on a furling setup. The A5 is made up of extra heavy fabric for durability, which makes it safe for me to use the sail up to 22+ knots of wind. This way I can keep it flying for a wider span of weather conditions without having to be too concerned about damaging the sail. In some conditions, I am actually more anxious about the rigging, than about ripping the sail.
In over 25 knots of wind, I roll in the genoa and set the jib on an inner forestay for better balance and control of the boat.”
The jib can also be reefed, but what about dedicated storm sails?
“I just recently received my first ever RTS storm jib, which also sets on my inner forestay. I have not tried it yet, but I am very much looking forward to that! This I reckon to use when winds are exceeding 30 knots.”
Woven Hybrid Cloth
“My Rolly Tasker mainsail and genoa are made of a hybrid fabric of woven polyester and Dyneema. They are extremely strong, and can be tightened to get the shape I want in all kinds of winds, without concern with regards to stretch or damage. And they are extremely durable so I never worry about the sails failing me”, Erik said. “Another great feature is the sails’ ability to keep their shape after I trim them as needed in different weather conditions. Dyneema never loses its shape, no matter what!”
These sails are made of Contender Fibercon Hybrid cloth, which is specially developed for a tri-radial sail design and demanding use in tough ocean cruising conditions. The high diagonal stability of the fabric, achieved by the combination of Dyneema yarns and Polyester fibres, is especially important for cruising, where sails are often reefed for longer periods of time.
Why Rolly Tasker Sails
Asked why Erik likes to use Rolly Tasker Sails, and what he likes about the company, he answers: “What I like most is Rolly Tasker Sails’ sense for quality and service. They live by the motto that nothing is impossible to produce. This shows well in their amazing factory, where they produce every part that is needed to complete the costumers wish down to the last detail.”
Erik’s Future Plans
“My goal of sailing to Greenland and into the ice is reached, but getting a brief taste of the beauty and danger up there really intrigued me.
I would absolutely love to take another shot at this, maybe in 2026, to sail through the whole, 300-mile fjord system of Scoresby Sound. It takes about 5 to 6 days to get around it all”, Erik said. “First, however, the plan is to visit Lindesfarne on the East Coast of Scotland. History says that this is the place where the Norwegian Vikings first set their feet on English, or rather Scottish soil. After that I might sail on to the Netherlands to attend a festival for Contessa yacht owners”.
See all of Erik’s adventures on his YouTube channel
